Hi there! Welcome to iNat!
You’ve already gotten tons of great advice above, but I just wanted to let you know about a couple of projects that happen in NYC that you can join to get out observing with folks or get some inspiration about things to observe.
The first is the City Nature Challenge. It’s a four-day BioBlitz of the city and part of a global project to observe urban nature. I help to organize the NYC arm of the challenge and you can join the project here: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2023-new-york-city In a couple weeks, there will be a list on that project page of public events you can join to explore NYC and make iNaturalist observations. If you join the project and you’re set up to get iNaturalist’s email updates, you’ll be updated when we post more info.
The second is the NYC Ecoflora project run by the New York Botanical Garden. They have monthly projects (EcoQuests) to look for specific kinds of organisms and some virtual lectures about nature in the city. Their main project is here: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/new-york-city-ecoflora The March EcoQuest, “Wings in Spring,” is here: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/wings-in-spring